Didot (typeface)

Common card · No. 346418

Didot is a group of typefaces named after the French Didot family of printers, punch-cutters, and publishers. They are classified as Modern or Didone. The most famous Didot typefaces were developed in 1784–1811. Firmin Didot (1764–1836) cut the letters and cast them as type in Paris. His brother, Pierre Didot (1760–1853), used the types in printing. His edition of La Henriade by Voltaire in 1818 is considered his masterwork. The typeface takes inspiration from John Baskerville's experimentation with increasing stroke contrast and a more condensed armature. The Didot family's development of a high contrast typeface with an increased stress is contemporary to similar faces developed by Giambattista Bodoni in Italy, though Didot’s slightly earlier development surpassed Bodoni as the first Modern typeface in history. Didot is described as neoclassical and evocative of the Age of Enlightenment. As the movement grew during the 18th century of France, Didot became a signature typeface in the region...

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